In 1985 a biology major friend told me about this fungus. I thought she was making it up. Like most Bio majors she smoked a great deal of organic material.

So, anyway, I based a radio drama horror story on the idea. It aired only once. It was so over the top with a big "deforestation of the rain forest is bad" message with native drums and an eagle "screeeeeee" sound and everything.

See. An evil ambitious logging executive survives a plane crash in the jungle with the help of a kindly Shaman. Exec then betrays the shaman so he can do his evil logging. But the exec gets his comeuppance while riding the elevator up to the 75th floor to sign the big deal. See the fungus he unknowingly contracted in the jungle (an event that was heavily foreshadowed - I mean HEAVILY - like a 2x4 hitting you on the kneecaps) makes his head explode when the elevator "gets to the top."

Did anybody else have Praga Khan's Injected with a Poison running though their head while reading this post? No? Just me, then? Okay.posted by sdodd at 1:21 AM on December 27, 2007

Have any enemies with ant farms?

also, seanyboy, I want video!posted by clearly at 2:54 AM on December 27, 2007

seanyboy: Grab some popcorn and enjoy the show (QT)posted by hal9k at 3:15 AM on December 27, 2007

Sorry, seanboy. Misread comment but I can see clearly now.posted by hal9k at 3:20 AM on December 27, 2007

Are there any *MEOW* simil*MEOW*arities to Toxoplasma *MEOW* gondii?posted by bonobo at 4:50 AM on December 27, 2007

Awesome. Btw, clicking on the parasite tag takes me to some of my favorite before-breakfast FPPs evar.posted by psmealey at 4:56 AM on December 27, 2007 [1 favorite]

See also the Lancet Fluke for an ant parasite that convinces it to climb to the top of a blade of grass. This one does it for a different purpose though.posted by Hubajube at 4:56 AM on December 27, 2007

Watching those worms made me want to go drwon myself too!posted by Pollomacho at 7:32 AM on December 27, 2007

They sell that stuff all over China. On every street-corner there is a shady little Tibetan man with "singing bowls" and other trinkets usually sold for exorbatant prices in boutiques across the West laid out on a cloth with ropes sewn to the corners. If the cops come he pulls the ropes and the cloth becomes a bag in seconds. Always, always laid out in the crap is a little bundle of the cordycepts "worms" (really the fungus that has "fossilized" a grub). This the Han Chinese haggle and argue over and end up buying for ridiculous prices, the other stuff doesn;t really sell, it mainly there as an excuse to be selling stuff. Note: they use similar tactics to sell weed in Yunnan.posted by Pollomacho at 7:40 AM on December 27, 2007

Ah! In the early 90s, a group of Chinese women under the training of Ma Junren rose out of total obscurity, shattered a bunch of distance records and set crazy marks that haven't really been approached since. Performance enhancing drugs were of course suspected. Ma attributed the success of his "army" to hard training, turtle soup, and "caterpillar fungus." I always wondered what he meant by that. Now I know, thanks!posted by bepe at 7:49 AM on December 27, 2007

I saw this when Planet Earth first aired, and it sufficiently freaked me out that I immediately started pondering how I could work it into a B movie script.

Which, of course, is slang for, 'how can I use this against my co-workers under the guise of research for a script'.posted by quin at 8:37 AM on December 27, 2007

Funny how all the vaccinations and cures that we humans point to as the great inventions of our time will probably be the things that destroy us in the long run due to role these diseases used to serve in population control.posted by any major dude at 9:08 AM on December 27, 2007

I just felt sorry for a cockroach. It's a Christmas miracle.posted by maudlin at 9:45 AM on December 27, 2007 [1 favorite]

This is all completely disgusting and distrubing, but I gotta say this is one of the finest posts I've seen in a while. Strange and fresh. Bravo.posted by cowbellemoo at 11:16 AM on December 27, 2007

You guys can hate on the fungus all you like, but you'll change your tune when the Buggers come.posted by LordSludge at 11:41 AM on December 27, 2007 [1 favorite]

Botfly vs Cordyceps is the new Alien vs Predator.posted by davejay at 12:52 PM on December 27, 2007

For more creepy parasite footage: the Gordian worm infests crickets and makes them jump into water, then swims away. Good times with parasite mind control!posted by gingerbeer at 1:29 PM on December 27, 2007

Yeah, I neglected to mention the gordian worm videos on there. There's another one where the worm crawls out of a frogs mouth. Pretty gross stuff.posted by puke & cry at 1:53 PM on December 27, 2007

Cordyceps may be lethal for insects but it is has remarkably beneficial effects when taken as a supplement.

Recent studies in New Zealand show that a combination of Reishi and Cordyceps extracts had beneficial effects on the quality of life for some advanced cancer patients. Researchers believe that a mixture of the active ingredients fromCordyceps is not as well researched as Reishi but Cancer Research UK suggests that, 'Cordyceps may be useful for cancer patients due to its enhancement of cell-mediated immunity, oxygen free radical scavenging and support for cellular bioenergy systems'.

Cordyceps stimulates the number of T helper cells, prolongs the survival of lymphocytes, enhances TNF-alpha and interleukin 1 production, and increases the activity of natural killer cells in cultured rat Kupffer cells (3). Enhanced proliferation of erythroid progenitor cell in the bone marrow of mice is also shown (8). One study suggests that cordyceps can stimulate progesterone production in animal cells (5). Another study shows that cordyceps may be effective against tumor celIs by down-regulating MHC class II antigen expression (7). In addition, anecdotal data suggest reduction of cyclosporin and aminoglycoside-induced renal toxicity, although the mechanism of action is not known (4).

Cordyceps is used for a wide range of conditions including fatigue, sexual dysfunction, coughs, and as an adaptogen or immune stimulant. In addition to anecdotal data regarding efficacy, small clinical trials have been performed, but only review articles are available in English (2) (3) (4). No adverse effects have been reported. Although no known drug interactions exist, blood glucose should be monitored in diabetics using cordyceps due to possible hypoglycemic effect (1). In addition, animal studies show proliferation of progenitor red blood cells (8); therefore, Cordyceps should not be used by those with myelogenous type cancers.posted by nickyskye at 12:32 AM on December 28, 2007

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